What is the standard that we’re all willing to live with?

That was the question asked by City Commissioner Mick McCallister in reference to the aesthetic appearance of Junction City.

“At some point, we need to figure out what do we want to be when we grow up; what is the standard that we’re all willing to live with?”

McCallister noted during the last City Commission meeting that Junction City has many rundown, and abandoned properties that need to be taken care of in order to improve the image of the community.

“Grass growing up in your concrete/parking lot looks ugly, it’s probably not a good thing for your concrete,” said McCallister. “The aesthetic part of it – let’s all be uniform and let’s all be standard…you want your property to look nice to bring customers in.”

Teamwork and widespread community effort are going to be the difference makers in cleaning up the aesthetic image, according to McCallister.

“I drive around this city kind of with blinders on, I don’t look side to side, I’m looking straight down the road and [thinking to myself] ‘wow that’s a really nice looking road, and boy look at those sidewalks, and look at those new lights’; and I kind of feel pride in where we were, where we are today, and hopefully where we’re going,” said McCallister. “And then I look off to the side of the roads and I say, we’re not doing this as a team.”

With all the work that has gone into fixing roads, creating a new bike path, beautifying the roundabouts and main entrances to the city, etc – the infrastructure doesn’t match.

“It looks like we’ve started something, and it doesn’t look finished; so when you see porches falling down or paint falling off or grass two feet high on your main drag, where folks enter the city – and it’s been said 100 times – your first impression is your most important impression.”

What is the standard that you are willing to live with; should the city work toward beautifying itself and ‘cleaning up’ its image?